‘In Mr. Harper’s Canada, if you’re not a well-connected insider, you’re simply not on the radar': NDP call Tories party of privilege

NDP call Tories party of privilege

OTTAWA — As the Conservatives try to brand the NDP as job killing proponents of carbon taxes, it appears the official Opposition is fighting back with a labelling strategy of its own.

In a spirited speech to caucus Wednesday, NDP Leader Tom Mulcair described the Conservative government as one that favours the rich and powerful at the expense of working families and the unemployed — the sort of people the NDP is here to protect.

“In Mr. Harper’s Canada, if you’re not a well-connected insider, you’re simply not on the radar,” Mulcair said.

“Despite 50 years of economic growth, Canadians are falling behind yet for the friends of this government, the tap is flowing as freely as ever.”

Mulcair slammed the government for threatening Canadian “institutions” like universal health care, Old Age Security and Employment Insurance, while continuing to “dish out massive tax cuts and subsidies to some of Canada’s worst polluters.”

He hammered the government over “reckless budget choices” and endless “scandals and mismanagement” of files like F-35, promising the NDP would, as the Opposition, “hold this government’s feet to the fire” and, as government, “be different.”

He also questioned the Tories’ management of the “still fragile” economic recovery, and vowed to put forward a motion Thursday calling on the federal government to meet with its provincial and territorial counterparts next month at an economic summit in Halifax.

Harper has come under fire for regularly skipping such meetings.

“This fall, we’ll put forward a positive, optimistic message for Canadians to see. One that creates the good-paying jobs and long-term growth we need without sacrificing our environment,” Mulcair said.

“One that restores the balanced economy we’ve had for generations instead of putting all our eggs in the resources basket.”

Mulcair has largely tried to stay above the fray this week as the Tories opened the fall parliamentary session with an onslaught of attacks against its chief opponent over so-called carbon taxes.

Outside the House of Commons, the NDP has sought to set the record straight by explaining to Canadians that it favours cap-and-trade — something the Tories once also supported — and Mulcair went so far as to call the Conservatives liars on television for spewing the misinformation.

It hasn’t stopped the Conservatives from pursuing their branding efforts, though during question period Wednesday, a few New Democrats remarked about how the Tories have been loose with the facts.

Conservatives backbenchers and cabinet ministers repeated the attack some 24 times in the House of Commons this week, with the prime minister getting in on the action on multiple occasions.

“It is very clear in the NDP platform, they call for $20 billion in carbon taxes on the Canadian economy,” Harper said.

“Manufacturers and consumers are saying this will destroy job creation and destroy their economic prospects. We will not endorse and adopt such foolish policies.”

Conservatives have been floating the carbon-tax angle for weeks but the party seems to have ramped up their attacks with the return of Parliament.

Meanwhile, the Liberals also took a stab at labeling the Conservatives Wednesday. While not unlike the NDP’s argument, the Liberals were a bit more descriptive.

On two occasions during question period, Liberal MPs compared Stephen Harper and one of his minister’s to Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.

“The Prime Minister once said that providing for the poor is not a federal responsibility. He does not think it is his job to help those people. The Prime Minister was clearly having a Mitt Romney moment,” Dominic LeBlanc said.

John McCallum later raised the issue of a housing coop that was being “crippled” by high Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation fees with Human Resources Minister Diane Finley.

“Will the minister re-evaluate these mean spirited policies and ensure that housing co-ops have the support they need?” he asked

“Or is this another Romney moment? Proof the Conservatives think it is not their job to help those people.”

Romney, a wealthy Republican politician and businessman, has come under fire for insensitive comments he’s made about the poor and middle class. Many pundits have argued he’s completely out of touch with average Americans.